This spinach and mushroom pasta is a super rich and healthier version of a regular alfredo pasta.
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What type of pasta is the best for this recipe?
In case you didn’t know, there are some pasta types that work better for particular sauces — I didn’t know until recently. I highly recommend you to check this article that has almost all varieties of pasta out there and the best matching recipes (sauces, soups, salads, etc).
For this recipe, in particular, I enjoy using Tagliatelle. It’s one of the types of pasta that I usually have in my house because it’s super versatile. Also, you can use spaghetti, linguine or fettuccine pasta.
How to make the spinach and mushroom sauce?
The velvety and creamy spinach and mushroom sauce is the soul of this recipe. It’s also one of my favorite ways of making a white sauce for pasta.
Sometimes, I like to make my rouge (white sauce) from scratch, but in the days I don’t have a lot of time I use this shortcut: heavy cream.
The result is not the same but it’s pretty close and I cut the time of the recipe in half. The sauce turns out richer and thicker than regular white sauce. So, if you desire a lighter result you can switch the heavy cream for half and half.
Now, to start the base of the sauce I cut the pancetta (or bacon) into small pieces and I sauteé it until it releases the flavor into the olive oil— about 2 minutes. Then I add the “substance” of the recipe: sliced white mushrooms and fresh spinach.
It will look like too much food but both the mushrooms and the spinach will lose a lot of water and therefore a lot of their volume. Let the water evaporate a bit or your sauce will be too liquid.
Then it’s time to add the heavy cream and season with salt and pepper. Reduce for 5 minutes over medium heat until the cream is infused with the pancetta, mushrooms and spinach flavor.
The whole sauce will take you less than 15 minutes. Then it’s just adding the cooked tagliatelle and parmesan cheese to taste before serving.
Easy and delicious weeknight dinner!
- 200 gr tagliatelle
- 50 gr pancetta (or bacon)
- 100 gr white mushrooms sliced
- 150 gr fresh spinach
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ⅓ cup parmesan cheese
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- Salt and Pepper to taste
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Cook the tagliatelle according to their package instructions.
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In a big pan over medium heat add the olive oil and saute the pancetta cut into pieces. Cook for 2 – 4 minutes until the pancetta releases its flavor and browns a little bit.
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Add the fresh spinach and the sliced mushrooms and let them cook for 5 – 8 minutes until they lose a lot of water. Stir every couple minutes to cook the veggies evenly.
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Pour the heavy cream and season with salt and pepper and reduce the sauce for 5 more minutes.
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Coat the tagliatelle with the sauce and the parmesan cheese. Mix well.
Owner and Food blogger on The Cookware Geek. She loves cooking, baking, traveling, playing with the cats, and knitting. She believes that eating delicious meals doesn’t require a culinary degree or a Michelin-star chef in your kitchen.